Dark Magica Chapters 1 - 4
by Wandering Wise Man
Summary: This is the story of the only male Magica. Follow our protagonist Yugure Nozomi through a story of mystery, action, and romance as he discovers the world of magic girls, witches, and demons. Each chapter runs parallel to an episode of the anime.
1. Chapter 1

**Dark Magica**

**Chapter 1: The Discovery**

*Yawn* A boy wakes up from sleeping. Medium length black hair, aqua eyes, and a stoic face emerge from under the covers. (Man...another day...) He rises out of bed and begins his morning routine.

(My name is Yugure Nozomi, and I'm a Junior attending High School in Mitakihara City.) *Brushes teeth* (Everyday I do the same boring routine. I wake up, I make breakfast, I go to class, and I come home.) *Takes a hot shower* (I've tried everything there is to do for fun, but it always gets boring after a while. I've been on the look out for something new to try to keep me occupied in my spare time.) *Puts on cloths* A pair of black dress pants, a long sleeve white button up shirt, a black button up vest, and a pair of sharp shiny dress shoes. (Hummm...I think eggs sound good today) *Makes four eggs over medium in a pan with salt and pepper* (I better hurry, I don't want to be late to class.) *Walks outside, hops on a bike and rides to school*

Yugure locks his bike up in front of the school and heads to class. The bell rings and Yugure is in his seat by the window, starring outside at the birds. The teacher walks in and begins by passing out papers and telling the students to turn on their bunsen burners. (I used to like this class, but I've studied it to the point where I already know everything in the high school curriculum.) *Doodles on paper* The teacher walks up "Yugure, I wish you'd take this class seriously, now turn on your bunsen burner and begin the assignment." *Sigh* "Yes ."

Lunch begins. (I don't really have any friends, so I usually eat alone) Yugure hears his nickname, Yuu, and looks over with subterfuge, to see a group of girls talking. Blonde girl "Yea, I think Yuu is cute, you should totally go over there and sit with him!" Purple haired girl "I dunno, he's kinda scarry, what if he yells at me?" Green haired girl "But you have to try, or you'll never know!" Purple haired girl with a newfound self confidence "You're right!"

(She's coming this way...well at least this will kill my boredom for lunch period.) Purple haired girl "H...h...hi there Yuu." (Hummm...she seems shy still, I should act cool maybe that will help her calm down.) With a depressing and dark aura, Yuu says "Yo." The purple haired girl takes a deep breath, gulps, sweats rapidly, and runs away crying. (Hummm...I wonder what set her off like that? It always ends up like this...) *Sigh* (I guess I'm eating alone again today. Might as well enjoy the nice weather.)

Classes come and go until school is almost done. Yugure sits at his desk for last period, daydreaming. (That new Rise CD is coming out today. I should go to the mall and see if it's any good.) *Bell rings* The teacher is talking about weekend homework in the background as Yuu continues daydreaming and leaving the classroom. The teacher yells "Yugure! I'm not done yet!" "Yea yea, homework page 193-194 due on Monday, I got it." After Yuu leaves, the teacher says to herself "I wish he'd take math class more seriously."

Yuu grabs his things and leaves the school. On his way out a boy approaches him. Brown haired boy "Hey Yuu, want to join the track team this year?" (I used to be on the track team a few years back. I'm pretty good at running, and I keep in shape, but it just got repetitive after a while.) "No sorry, not this year."

Yuu grabs a health drink from a vending machine before heading to the music store. (The mall is busy today, as to be expected on a Friday after school and work hours.)

Yuu goes over to a console and proceeds to accomplish what he came here to do. (Hummm...this isn't bad. I may decide to buy her CD if there are more good songs like...huh? What's up with that pink haired girl over there? She looks confused all the sudden.)

(I wonder what her deal is? Now she looks like she's trying to listen for something...I don't hear anything out of the ordinary.) The pink haired girl begins to wander off, as if led by something. (This could be interesting, I'm going to follow her.)

After following her around the mall for a while, the pink haired girl enters a restricted area of the mall. (Hummm...it looks like that area is under renovation. Is her dad working on it? No...it's after hours for laborers, and besides, I don't see anyone else around. This is getting interesting.)

The girl enters a room and asks "Where are you? Who are you?" (I don't hear anything...what in the world is going on here?) A metal plate suddenly falls above her. (SHIT! No way I can make it in time!) It misses her. (Man...that was close. I don't think she noticed me though.)

She picks up something from the ground and says "Was it you?" (The hell man...nothing is there. This is really starting to freak me out.) Another girl appears, a black haired girl.

(They seem to know each other.) (The pink haired girl called her Homura, I'll have to remember that. Her eyes say something serious is up.) Homura tells the pink haired girl to leave him alone. (If Homura sees it too, the pink haired girl can't just be crazy. If I can't see it, that means most people cant, and since I've never heard of anything like this on the news, it must be something the general public is oblivious to. I probably just stumbled onto something HUGE. I need to gather more information before I make a move and try to get involved.)

Suddenly a fire extinguisher goes off, knocking Homura back. (I find out the pink haired girls name is Madoka and the new blue haired girl is Sayaka. They both run off. I need to decide who to follow and fast.) Suddenly Homura disappears. (What...what the hell? Well I guess that decides it for me) Yugure darts after the two girls, while trying to stay out of their sight. The girls dissappear while running down a hallway. (Again...hummm...I can't just let this go. I'm going to camp out around here and see if they reappear.)

(I hope they come back so I can figure out what's going on here.) A few minutes pass, and the girls reappear. (Huh, I hear voices.) Yuu checks around the corner and sees the girls with another blonde. (Hummm...now there are four of them, that confirms it.)

The blonde says to Homura "The witch has ran away, if you want to kill it you should chase after her as soon as possible." (Now there are witches? I better keep listening.) The blonde threatens Homura by telling her that she wont get in the way this time. She isn't interested though, she's on another agenda. Homura flees the scene. (She didn't seem intimidated, I wonder why she left?)

The blonde holds out a necklace and a light emits from it. She says "You should thank these two girls, I just happened to be passing by." Madoka asks it if it was asking her for help, then Sayaka exclaims "How do you know our names?" Madoka responds "Something?" Then the two say "Huh? Really?" and "My wish?" (A wish? This is it...I've stumbled onto something that could make my life exciting for a very long time.) *Yugure grins*


	2. Chapter 2

**Dark Magica**

**Chapter 2: The Message**

Several explosions rain across the city in the darkness. Yugure is flying above the city, shooting fireballs from his hands down at Homura. Yugure has a mad grin on his face. Homura blinks from one spot to another using her time stop ability and yells up at Yugure "I told you not to get in my way, now you will pay with your life." Homura freezes time and puts a pipe bomb right behind Yugure. Just as time continues, Yugures expression goes from mad to deathly afraid. An explosion engulfs him, and Homura looks up at the clearing smoke, waiting.

A mad laugh can be heard from inside the clearing smoke. A shield surrounds him. "You know what the funny thing is?" He says as he's clearing his soul gem with a grief seed. "I haven't even been using my magica form! Aaaahahahaha!" Yugure holds out his silver colored soul gem and transforms, gaining a black butler outfit with coattails, and a magic staff. "I wont fall for that one again. You know what's nice about this power? I don't have to feel this." Yugures hand covers his right eye slowly, then with a maniacal laugh, he squeezes his fingers into his eye socket and rips it out. His hand covered in blood, he animates the eye so that it's looking behind him.

Homura asks "Why...why do you do this? All I want is to get my friend back." Yugure replies "Why? Why does Mami have to die for her? What gives you the RIGHT to decide something like that? She deserves to live just as much as anyone else!" Yuu raises his hands, each filled with grief seeds, and conjures fireballs as far as the eye can see. Homuras normally calm demeanor turns to terrified at the sight of them all. "I'll take the fear in your eyes to mean that your time stop ability has a limit. You cant escape this time!" "That's where you're wrong." says Homura, as her expression goes back to normal, "I can go back and stop you from ever becoming a magica!"

(Shit, what do I do now? I can't stop her.) The slider on Homuras buckler begins to charge. (Did I really do all of this for nothing?) The buckler unlocks. (Maybe if I can go back too...but...do I have the power?) The slide mechanism starts to move. Yugures mad expression turns into determination, and he turns his soul gem totally black to open a portal to the past. (Damn...not enough power...it's too small. I can feel myself turning into a warlock...this is the end...) Yugure suddenly gets hit with inspiration (The Rise advertisement in my pocket!) He rips it out from inside his shirt, and shoves it through the portal just as it fades away. (I hope...things turn out better this time.) Just then the mechanism on the buckler clicks, and time is reset.

(A wish? This is it...I've stumbled onto something that could make my life exciting for a very long time.) *Yugure grins* (Huh? Those girls are all leaving now. I'll follow them home and then look over all the data I've collected so far.)

"Sigh." Yugure collapses on his bed after he gets back home. (Tomorrow is Saturday, so that makes it easier to gather more information. I'll wake up early tomorrow and check out that blondes apartment.) Yugure smiles brightly. (She was pretty cute!)

Yugure finds an inconspicuous spot and begins camping out. (Man...this is boring...I hope she didn't leave already...wait...those other two younger girls and here.) Madoka and Sayaka are greeted by the blonde girl, whos name I find out is Mami, and are let inside her apartment. (I don't really see anyone around, I think it's worth the risk to eavesdrop in front of the door.) Climbing the stairs, Yugure sees a delivery box. (Hummm...this will make me look less suspicious...) Box in hand, he puts his ear to the door.

From inside "Kyubey has chosen you, you're involved now." (That sounds like Mami, so she must be the veteran here. Kyubey must be the name of the creature as well) "I think an explanation is in order" (PERFECT! Now maybe I can learn everything I need to know to get a wish.)

The three girls chat for a while, and Yugure learns everything he needs to know. Suddenly a man asks Yugure "What are you doing?" (SHIT!) "I was making a delivery, but it seems no one is home, I guess I'll come back tomorrow." Yugure walks back downstairs, and returns the package to the doorstep he found it on before heading home to compile his data.

(OK so Kyubey is the creature which can grant wishes, and you obtain a soul gem, which purpose is still unclear to me, other than housing some kind of power. It seems there is a price for the wish though. You're somehow forced into fighting witches. On Monday, Mami is going on a witch hunt, so I should follow them then.)

Sunday comes and goes as Yugure thinks about all the different wishes he could make. Monday begins and Yugure follows the girls all day long. (So...Mami is in 9th grade, so she's two years younger than me. The other three are in 8th grade.) Lunch rolls around and Yugure spots the girls on the roof. (Man...I can't hear them from down here...) His stomach growls fiercely. (Uhhh...might as well grab something to eat, I don't think they are going to be going anywhere until school is out anyways.)

Ding dong ping pong, the school bell rings and Yugure begins following the girls again. (Man...they have been wandering around for hours...first a cafe, then the mall, now a bridge...)

Suddenly Homura is in front of Yugure, pointing a gun at his head and holding his shoulder with her other hand. (THE HELL!) The sound of cars, birds, airplanes, and everything else goes silent. Nothing moves except the lips on Homuras face, yelling at Yugure, "YUU! How the hell are you here? Did you travel back too?" (Travel back...what is she talking about? I should try to get some more information out of her) "Homura...nice to see you again, when was the last time we met again?" Homura gets impatient with Yugure "Don't play dumb with me, I came back to stop you from becoming a magica and...wait..." Homura thinks to herself for a moment (If he did come back, where is his soul gem, and why isn't he with the rest of them?) "You don't remember anything do you?" (Dammit, I got caught) "You got me, I was just trying to figure out what's going on here." Homura continues thinking (This isn't how it turned out the last time...he's not supposed to be a magica for a few more days.) "I'll make you a deal Yuu, if I tell you everything you want to know, you wont interfere with anything I'm doing."

(Hummm...from what I can tell, she's up to something, and I'm a threat.) "Very well Homura, it's a deal. I need to know two things. One, what is it that you're up to, so I can stay out of your way. Two, where is Kyubey so I can make my wish."

"So you're insistent on becoming a magica still? Just keep your promise, or I WILL kill you. The answer to your first question is to save Madoka. The answer to your second question is there is one watching me about fifty feet back on the railing of the bridge. Don't worry, it doesn't know we're having this conversation. I'm going to go now, I never want to see you again."

The sounds return, the world continues turning, and Homura is gone. Yugure turns around, looks at the railing, waits a second, estimates the time it takes to travel next to him, and then speaks "Hey...you there" (Hummm...no response...it must be waiting to see if I'm bluffing) "Yea I can see you...what are you?" Yugure points vaguely at the railing. Inside Yugures head he can hear "I've never been seen by a boy before...but wait...you have immense emotional energy" "Huh?" (Well I have always bottled up my emotions. I don't know what relevance this has, so I'll just ignore it for now.) "Oh yea, I have lots of that stuff stored up, so what's up, how come I've never seen anything like you around before?" "I'm Kyubey, I can grant you a wish in exchange for your services. You will become a magical...ummm...guy I suppose, and fight witches~" "I agree" "Th...that was fast, what do you desire?" Yugure grins with excitement and confidently says "I wish for the ability to influence things with my willpower!" Kyubey has a somewhat shocked look on his face, although Yugure can not see it yet, and grants his wish.

A silver soul gem is torn from him, and encased into a housing to protect it. (So that's what Kyubey looks like.) "So Kyubey, tell me what I need to know about hunting witches." Kyubey explains the basics for a minute, then Yugure remembers about the girls. "Shit, I'll catch up to you later, I gotta go for now." He runs towards the direction he saw the girls heading in before. On his way he begins testing his new powers. (Hummm...maybe I can use this to run faster?) Yugure focuses and begins running at double...triple...quadruple, and faster speeds. People begin looking. (I probably shouldn't do this in the eye of the public. I should see if I can make myself invisible before trying anything else out.) Yugure ducks inside the abandoned building where he saw the girls enter, and after a few minutes, makes himself invisible. (Next is this weak point...my soul gem. Creating a high speed rotational magnetic field around it should stop pretty much anything from damaging it) Yuu focuses on his soul gem, and a tiny glow emits from it. (There, now to head into...whatever that is up there.)

Yugure rushes inside. (This...is insanity...) Running through the labyrinth like corridors, Yugure spots several muskets laying around (These must be one of their abilities.) Suddenly a loud *BANG* goes off, and the labyrinth disappears. "Tch." (I must have been too late. Ah well. I better head home and go over everything I learned today. Something is really bothering me about what Homura said.)

*Yawn* Yugure wakes up from sleeping. A stoic face emerges from under the covers. (Man...another day...) He rises out of bed and begins his morning routine.

(My name is Yugure Nozomi, and I'm a Junior attending High School in Mitakihara City.) *Brushes teeth* (Everyday I do the same boring routine. I wake up, I make breakfast, I go to class, and I come home.) *Takes a hot shower* (I've tried everything there is to do for fun, but it always gets boring after a while. I've been on the look out for something new to try to keep me occupied in my spare time.) *Puts on cloths* A pair of black dress pants, a long sleeve white button up shirt, a black button up vest, and a pair of sharp shiny dress shoes. (Hummm...I think eggs sound good today) *Makes four eggs over medium in a pan with salt and pepper* (Oh yea...I'm also a wizard) Yugure smiles with excitement as his future lay ahead of him, not knowing what's in store for the first time in a long time.


	3. Chapter 3

**Dark Magica**

**Chapter 3: Yugures Plan**

**Yugure attends class for the first time since he discovered the Magica girls. On his way to class he passes Homura, who gives him a glare that spoke words. They seemed to say "I'm watching you." (As long as I keep up appearances at school, I can follow them while invisible elsewhere, and she should be clueless.)**

**School comes and goes, and Yugure heads back home. Yugure ducks behind an alley and turns invisible. (Good, now I can test some new powers out. Increasing speed is nice, but how about doing what Homura does and teleport.) Yugure looks for a spot free from people and focuses. (Hummm...no good. Maybe if I try to take a scientific approach, like shifting my molecules at light speed. I'll need a barrier to shield me from particles, but it should be pretty simple.) Yugure focuses again, gaining a slight glow, then teleports across the street. (Alright, that's much faster than running, but it takes a second to prepare, I'll have to plan accordingly if I want to use it in battle. Flying sounds more effective, and I should be able to move pretty fast without a barrier. By moving the matter around me I should be able to push myself in any direction at any speed I want.) Yugure lifts up off the ground and starts flying all over. (Hey this is pretty fun. As long as I don't stop suddenly at fast speeds this should be very effective.)**

**Yugure lands on his porch and enters his apartment. (I should make a few things in case I need them. Now where did I put those chemistry notes...) Yugure opens a few drawers in his desk and pulls out a notebook. He flips through a bunch of formulas and equations. (This one look good, and that should be effective too.) Yugure grabs the iron stove tops and runs the sink, mixing the iron with the water and turning it into rust with his power. He then goes into his garbage can and removes all the cans. (I just need to powder them both and mix.) He uses his abilities to quickly do the job, and makes several containers to put the powder in. (There, that should do. Onto the next one.) Yugure spends the next several hours mixing and making several compounds, and storing them in his vest pockets.**

**Dusk approaches, the sky turns a deep red, and Yugure is finished with his mixing. (Now to head out and find a witch to kill!) Yugure goes invisible and flies above the city, looking for anything suspicious. (Huh...is that the girls by the park? I should check it out.) Yugure flies down, and discovers Mami and Homura arguing. (Homura seems to be trying to get Mami to lay off of Madoka as well, but Mami didn't let herself be threatened by her. (Good, that's one more potential ally if I end up needing to fight her.)**

**The two girls split up and Yugure is alone at the park. The silver soul gem begins to glow faintly. (Huh? Oh right, that means a witch is near by I guess.) Yugure looks around and sees a barrier. (Heh...let's do this.) Yugure heads towards the barrier, and a lion familiar pounces on him, knocking him to the ground. *Tch* (These things must be able to sense my soul gem. I wonder if I can use my flying trick on these guys.) Yugure moves his hand up to the familiar and launches it up into the air. Yugure grins, and says with gall in his voice, "Time to test out my fireball!" Yugure cups his hands and spinning circles of red begin shaping spheres of fire in his hands. (By rapidly increasing the speed of the molecules in the air, I can create a fireball.) "Eeeeeat THIS!" Yugure throws a fireball at the familiar as fast as he can. It flies at it...and past it. Yugures expression turns to disappointment. (Man...and I thought I looked so cool. Well no one should be able to see me at least.) The familiar begins falling back down. Yugure holds his other hand straight up in the air, waiting for the familiar to land on top of him, teleporting out of the way just as it hits the fireball and cuts a hole clean through the familiar, killing it.**

**Yugure retracts his invisibility. "Man...no grief seed?" Kuybey says from behind Yugure "That was just a familiar, you need to kill witches for grief seeds." "Well how do I tell the difference?" "A witchs aura will make your soul gem glow brighter, and it will pulsate." "Aah...would have been nice to know earlier." "I would have told you but you ran off before." "Whatever." Yugure decides to walk home so he can concentrate on thinking of new combat tactics.**

**The next school day begins and Yugure is flying outside invisible, playing with a duplicate of himself he created. (I can make it do all kinds of things, It can even interact with objects and talk.) Yugure soon gets bored with the copy and attends the rest of class himself. School lets out and Yugure begins heading home, flying as usual.**

**(Is that Madoka down there? She looks like she's in a hurry.) Yugure observes Madoka finding Mami, then returning to the school with her. They proceed to enter a barrier. (I better go in too. I don't see Homura anywhere, so I should be safe in case a familiar or witch decides to attack me again, but I'll go in invisible just in case.) Yugure enters the barrier shortly behind the girls.**

**Suddenly Homura shows up, but Mami quickly disables her. (Damn...she must be really powerful if she can handle Homura like that with such little effort. Either way I don't have to worry about Homura any more.) Yugure continues following Madoka and Mami deeper into the dessert labyrinth.**

**Madoka starts talking to Mami about her wish. Suddenly Mami starts telling Madoka that there is nothing good about being a Puella Magi. (Man, I really feel bad for her. But she's so strong despite her circumstances. I think I'm starting to fall for this girl.) Mami begins dispatching familiars like it was nothing. (She's so graceful too.) Yugure stands in awe as he watches her fight. (That's it, I'm going to introduce myself to her after this. Having a team would make things a whole lot easier. Someone who can take care of Homura would make things a lot easier too.)**

**(She's even making quick work of this little witch.) Suddenly the witch sprouts a long neck and heads for Mami. (What the...SHIT, she has no muskets left to defend herself) The witch opens it's jaws around Mami. Yugure, with a panicked look in his eyes, pushes his hands out as quickly as he can. (This has to be perfect.) Yugures face shifts to concentration and determination. (I WILL save her. First, teleport her WAY out of range, so it can't detect her any more. Second, as she's teleporting, move her soul gem onto a copy made from the candy floor. Hopefully it goes after the soul gem like that familiar did with me earlier. Third place a barrier around her soul gem so it won't be destroyed.) Yugures hands move swiftly and completes the actions. It appears as if her head was bit off. (I should probably de-transform her body...that sort of thing always happens in manga and stuff.) Her body falls to the floor, and the witch eats the body. (Perfect, it thought it was her. Now to kill that son of a bitch and get her soul...shit...Homura is back. Her magic must have wore off...I wonder why, she shouldn't be dead.)**

**(She blew it up...great, now I have to look for her soul gem. First I should find Mami and see if she's alright) Yugure finds Mami in a hallway in the school building passed out. Yugure shakes Mami "Hey, wake up, wake up dammit!" Yugure checks her pulse. (She's not dead...but she sure seems like it.) Suddenly Kyubey says from behind Yugure "You need to return her soul gem to her." "I really wish you'd stop doing that...you're going to give someone a heart attack." Kyubey smiles and runs off.**

**Yugure spends all night looking for her soul gem. As dawn approaches, he finally finds it. The casing is filled with shrapnel from the pipe bombs, but the barrier seemed to have prevented any shards from getting to the gem itself. (Heh) Yugure picks up the soul gem and smiles as a tear rolls down his eyes. (Am I...crying? What for?) Yugure closes his eyes, wipes the tear away, and regains his composure. (I should probably get this to Mami now.) Yugure walks up the stairs to the hallway where he found her. Half way up he thinks (Why am I walking...this is silly, I'm getting all emotional over a girl I don't even know yet, and it's distracting me.) Yugure floats up the rest of the stairs and over to her body.**

**Mami slowly wakes up. "Huh? Who are you? Where am I?" Mami suddenly remembers the witch and what had happened. "MADOKA!" She says as she sits up in a panic. "It's alright, Homura took care of that witch, Madoka and Sayaka are safe." Mami takes a second to calm back down. "What happened? Where are the others, and who are you?" "My name is Yugure Nozomi, and...I have a lot of explaining to do. We should head somewhere safe to discuss what's happened." Mami nods, and they begin walking. Yugure says "We can't go to your apartment, I'll explain later. We should go to mine. I know you don't know me, but I'm asking you to trust me." "You're right, I don't trust you, but I can defend myself if I need to." "Fair enough, my place is this way."**

**They arrive at Yugures apartment. "What kind of tea do you like?" Mami asks "What kinds do you have?" Yugure pops around the doorway to the kitchen with the entire kitchen drawer, filled with nearly every kind of tea imaginable. "I have 107 blends ranging from light to dark, sweet to herbal, and local to imported." "You must really like tea ." She giggles. "Please, call me Yuu." "Very well, Earl." Yugure looks confused. "I said Yuu." "I meant the tea, I want Earl Grey tea please." Yugures face turns bright read as he realizes his stupidity. "Aah yes! Of course, hahaha." Yugure prepares tea for Mami and himself, then his face turns back to serious. "Now, to get down to business." Mamis expression follows in suit.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Dark Magica**

**Chapter 4: The Partnership**

**Time goes by as Yugure tells Mami his story. Their expressions change from serious to laughter as time goes by. "So Mami, now that I've told you my story, why don't you tell me yours?" Mami pauses for a second, then simply says "I really don't have much of one to tell. I was about to die, so I had no choice." "I won't lie, your strength of heart impresses me." Mamis' expression turns back to serious as she speaks the words "I still don't trust you yet, so let's discuss how things are going to work." "Agreed," says Yugure as he nods his head.**

**Yugure starts by putting a drawing pad on an easel, and making a few notes. "Here is what I know so far. Homura somehow knows something about the time line, and wants to change it. It heavily involves Madoka. We also know she's incredibly powerful, and can teleport instantly. Her weapons of choice are guns and explosives, so she probably has little physical combat capability. If we end up fighting her, our goal should be to restrain her." Mami nods, "Agreed, she couldn't do anything when I tied her up inside the barrier."**

**"Secondly, the whole thing about witches, magi, and Kyubey. Something seems...off about it all." Mami takes a minute to explain how the system works. "Hummm...so that's why Kyubey was interested in my emotional energy." Mami looks puzzled. "Ooh, let me explain, almost all my life I've been internalizing my emotions. Everyone tells me it's bad for you, but I have yet to snap or see any negative effects."**

**Mami looks at Yugure with disdain and tells him "High amounts of emotional energy in Magi can turn you into a witch, or in your case a warlock. If you don't clear your soul gem, or if too much negative emotional energy escapes too quickly, you're dead." Yugure tries to laugh off his nervousness and says "Well then, you better keep an eye on me huh?" Mami, not amused, continues "I won't hesitate to shoot you if you start to transform." "Ouch, I guess I better keep it under wraps then."**

**Yugure flips the sheet to a clean page on his drawing pad. "Lastly, we have us. No one knows that I exist except Homura, and everyone thinks you're dead. I don't think Homura will tell anyone, it might affect the time line in a way she doesn't want, because apparently I'm not supposed to be a magi yet. If we stay hidden for the time being, we can work with subterfuge more easily." Mami nods and agrees "If I go back to Madoka now, Homura will surely be there. If I continue on alone, they will spot me eventually. It seems I have no choice but to team up with you for now."**

**Mami pulls a section of ribbon from her hair and hands it to Yugure. "Here, tie this somewhere, that way I'll always know where you are." Yugure takes the yellow ribbon and ties it around his right arm. "I wish I had something to give to you." Yugure thinks for a second. "I got it!" He shuffles around on his desk for a second and presents Mami with a tiny coin and a smile. "What is this?" Mami asks with a perplexed look in her eyes. "It's the last thing my grandpa gave me before he died, he was my last relative." Mami begins to say something but is cut off before a word can form. "It's OK." Yugure moves his hand over the coin in her palm, and it begins emitting a soft yellow glow. "You're the closest thing to a relative I have now, and besides, what good is it going to do sitting under a pile of papers on my desk?" Mami is lost for words for a second, and blushes a little, then speaks with confidence, "Alright then, partners it is!" Mami and Yugure both smile and get back to the meeting at hand.**

**"Well then, we should start with some combat drills utilizing both of our skills." Yugure goes on for a few hours with Mami about each others skills and abilities. Mami eventually suggests "We should go out witch hunting tonight. Since grief seeds have two uses each, we can split them." "Good idea, Kyubey explained how the witch tracking system works, and if I use my teleporting ability I can cover a large area in a short time. Also you won't risk getting seen." "Very well, I will stay here until you return then. If you run into any trouble, remove your ribbon and I will come." "Gotcha, be back soon!" Yugure salutes Mami and flies out the window as he turns invisible.**

**Mami sits by the window as she waits for Yugure to return, as a familiar voice rings in her head. "So...you're alive." She turns around to see Kyubey wagging his tail behind her. Mami lets out a disgruntled sigh as Kyubey begins to speak again. "You know other girls are about to fight for your territory." Mami replies "It's none of my concern now, I have other business to attend to." Kyubey jumps up to the window, turns his head and says "I don't know what you're up to, but my services are confidential, so I won't tell the others you're alive. Don't do anything you will regret" Kyubey jumps out the window and Mami continues waiting.**

**About fifteen minutes go by and Yugure pops in the window. "Yo. I found a barrier, and don't worry, the other girls are at school a ways away, so they shouldn't sense it. Hold still, I'm going to try and put a photo-reflective barrier around you." Mami looks uncomfortable and says "A...a what?" "I'm going to try and make you invisible. Just relax, this won't hurt at all." "OK then." Yugure moves his hands in front of Mami, attempting the task at hand. "I don't feel invisible." "Ugh...that's because you're not...this is hard to do on someone else." Yugure tries again and makes her partially invisible. "Well it's better than nothing. At a distance no one should be able to see you at least. I'll have to practice more later. Now, grab my hand" Mami blushes slightly and grabs Yugures hand, and they both take off out the window.**

**They arrive at a warehouse after a short flight. They take a short walk to the barrier inside, and Mami transforms. Mami looks at Yugure, as if waiting for him to do something. "What?" "Aren't you going to transform?" Yugure looks embarrassed "Well...uuh...you see...I don't know how to." Mami looks surprised, frozen for a second. "Well Kyubey told me how to, but I never tried it...I'm not going to get a dress am I?" Mami giggles and thinks to herself (That means he's been fighting this whole time using just his wish powers. I'm sure his transformed state has incredible potential). "If you're confident you can fight without it, it might be better that way. Using your transformed state clouds your soul gem faster." Yugure rubs his hand behind his head "Is that so? Well, let's head in." Mami nods and they walk inside the barrier.**

**Inside a giant tower lined with TV monitors showing images of Yugure and Mamis' past. Yugure looks around "What...is this? Is this...yes...my life." He stares into the screens, showing him images of lethargy. "No...I'm not boring...I was just bored...right? Life is boring, it made me this way, I don't want to be boring." The reflection of the monitors can clearly be seen in his eyes as he looks across hundreds of monitors, all showing him sitting, laying down, and not doing much in general. "Why, why is life so boring?" Yugure closes his eyes and curls into a ball. All he can hear is the voices of his peers talking down on him. "Yugure, why didn't you finish your portion of the group project?" "Hey Yuu man, pick up the pace." "YUGURE! Wake up and pay attention in MY CLASSROOM!" "Yuu..." "Yugure, what's the deal man?" "Hey." "What's up?" "Try Harder." Yugure covers his ears with his hands. Puppet familiars pull up his hands and open his eyes, forcing him to watch and listen. His soul gem begins to cloud.**

**Mami is floating not too far from Yugure. The monitors in front of Mami are showing her dead parents, and images her being alone. She looks at them, listens to what they have to say. "She has no friends." "She never talks to anyone." Mami just smiles and fills the screens with a barrage of musket fire. Yugure turns around to see Mami overcome her past, and is hit with inspiration. He smiles, snaps his fingers, and spontaneously combusts the monitors in front of him. Yugure looks sad for a second, then exclaims "Not any more. This time I put my all into it!"**

**A giant witch surfaces from below. A conglomeration of computer parts, wires, and circuit boards, with a monitor for a head. It reaches for Mami with a hand of wire. Yugure moves his hand and blocks the hand as Mami restrains it with ribbon. The two look at each other and nod. They fly down its side, pelting it with fireballs and musket shots, covering the other from any familiars. "Yugure! Can you keep it still for a second?" "I'm on it." Yugure pulls against the witches wires, and wraps them around itself. Mami summons her Trio Finale and shoots. The wires absorb back into the witch and it dodges by pushing against the wall with the wire hands.**

**"Psh" Yugure tries to think of a new strategy while Mami is providing cover fire. "Mami, one more time." Yugure begins preparing his teleport ability. Mami nods and summons her Trio Finale once again. "Yo." Yugure says as he's suddenly next to Mami. He puts his finger on the trigger and teleports Mami, himself, and the oversized musket to point blank range in front of the witch. The duo says at the same time "TRIO FINALE." As Yugure holds up a barrier in front of himself and Mami.**

**The blast throws the two back, relatively unharmed. Yugure looks up at the clearing smoke and sees the monitor head sprout wings and fly off. "Come on Mami let's...Mami?" Yugure looks over and sees a familiar removing her soul gem ring as she clears her head. "Oh no you don't you little bastard!" Yugure chases after the familiar thinking to himself (I can't blast it, I'll risk damaging her soul gem. Nothing is around to stop it either. I need some kind of precision attack. Hummm...) Yugure pulls out a pouch from inside his vest pocket and smiles, then whips the pouch at the puppet, making the pouch burst in front of it with his magic. A substance coats the familiar, and it slows down, and eventually stops moving. Yugure grabs the ring and says "That's what we in the human world call an endothermic reaction. It literally absorbed all the energy from your body." Yugure crushes the puppet under his dress shoes.**

**Mami isn't far behind him, and Yugure hands it back to her. "You could have gone after the witch you know." says Mami. "Yea, but I thought gaining a little bit of trust was more important." Mami blushes a little. "Your soul gem got pretty cloudy, we need to get you one soon." Yugure starts to sweat. "Ooh yea...that whole turn into a monster thing, hahaha." Yugure looks at his soul gem. "It's over that...way..." The two look over and see Sayaka thrashing the witch around from a distance. "Aww man..." Yugure hangs his head in disappointment. Mami pats Yugure on the shoulder. "It's alright, at least I trust you a little more now." Yugure looks up and smiles as she walks away, and the barrier disappears.**


End file.
